Shoe



Nov; 27,1923. 1,475747 W. H. CARY SHOE Filed June 29, 1923 Fig. L

nvenor. Wilhelm H Cury by/e/@MNM' A'Hys.

Patented Nov. 27, 1923.

UNiTEDV'sTAT-Es PATENT ermee,

WILLIAM E. CARY, OF BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 AVON SDLE COM- PANY, 0F AVON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION 0F MASSACHUSETTS.

SHOE.

Application led June 29,

To allwwmitmaycancem:

Be it knownthat I, WILLIAM H. CARY, a. citizen of the United States, and resident of Brockton, county ofPlymouth, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Shoes, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawing, is a specification, like characterson the drawing representing like parts.

This invention relates to improvements in shoes and shoe soles and also in the process of forming the sole and attaching the sole to the shoe. rlhe general object thereof is to provide a shoe having a plastic sole which will more securely be retained on the bottom of the shoe.

Heretofore certain shoes of this type have been made with the plastic sole sewed directly to the welt of the shoe but this proved to be unsatisfactory because if the sole was soft enough to give desirable qualities to the shoe it was so soft that the stitches which held the sole on the shoe would pull through the tread and permit it to easily break away from the shoe. Also the soft plastic sole permitted the welt of the shoe to spread and the alternate spreadin and contractin as the wearer walked, besldes being uncom ortable, soon caused the stitches to cut through the plastic tread. If the usual still' leather'` whole sole is use for a shoe, the base sole holds the welt together since it is fairly sti and non-extensible, but in the case of a shoe having a plastic tread member, which is desirable, particularl` in xsport shoes, Vsome means must be provi ed ,to take the place of the leather sole andv perform its :function in keeping the welt from spreadin and. the bottom of the shoe in the correct s ape.

l In other shoes of this type, a leather base sole was provided which covered the bottom of the shoe, formed an anchorage for the stitches gwhich connected the same to the welt, and held the 'bottoml of the shoe in shape by holding the,weltstoget-her.; The plastic tread member -was fastened on the outside of the leather base sole and the stitches went through the plastic tread member of the sole and throughthe leather anchorin or base member and then through the we t of the shoe to hold the sole on the bottom of the shoeL In order to assist in retaining the tread member on the leather base 1923. Serial No. 643,459.

member a cement was used on the adjoining surfaces of the leather base member and the -ment was used which would stick to the leather base `member it would not stick sufficiently to the tread member to keepethe tread member frombreakin away from the leather base member. 'Ille stitches, as above-mentioned, would hold the tread member to the leather base member for a,

Y short period of time butfwould finally pull i, through the tread member and permit the sole to part from the welt of the shoe.y

When the tread member parts from the leather base member even a slight distance at a single point, water is permitted to enter between the base member and the tread member, and this opening allows the rubberito work and the stitches to Cut through. The

HEISSUED edge of the leather base member is usually lazed to prevent waterfrom entering the interior of a leather base member from the edge, but the flat surface of the leather base member is usually unglazed and if water is permitted to 'get into the sole of the shoe next to the leather base member between said member and the tread, the dampness grad- Aually'spreads until the whole leather base sole is morev or lessdamp depending upon the amount of water which gets in. The water causes the. cement which sticks the tread member to the leather base member to deteriorate and thus shortens-.the time that the tread member will be held on the leather base member by 'the adhesion of the cement. Further than this, lthe leather base member is usually made from' split'leather, which is more orless in layers and is of such loose texturethat even though the cement which f-isused to "stick the tread member to the base member firmly joins the two members, the layer of leather which' is permeatedby the cement easily pulls away from the remainder of the leather base member andallows the tread member to part from the shoe.

One of the objects of the present invention is to overcome the dimculties which are -prescnt in the usual type of shoe above described. This is done by providing a tough substantially non extensible base member which performs the function of the Aleather base member but which has none of thedisadvantages of the leather.

Another object of the invention is to pro# vide a novel base member. The base member is preferably of such a composition that the tread member! or tread unit may beV caused to cohere therewith and to this end the base member is so made that it partakes of the composition of the tread unit. If the tread unit is of plastic crude rubber, the base member is preferably of a vulcanized rubber and fibre composition.

Another object of fore, is to provide a shoe with a novel unitary sole. I With a basermember having a composition partaking of. the nature of the tread unit a cement may be used to cement the tread unit Ito the base member which, be-

cause of the likenessof the composition of` said unit and member, will cause the tread unit to securely and irremovably cohere to the base member. The union between the tread unit and the base member isI one of cohesion, rather than adhesion which is the case if a rubber tread unit is cemented to a leather base member. A rubber cement is used which dissolves part of the rubber on the surface of the tread unit and part of the 1 rubber on the composition base member'and when this cement driesthere is an interlocking of the molecules of the rubber on said unit and member which causes the two to be inseparably joined. The union may be further strengthened by an application of heat to the tread unit during the cementing process so that the tread unit is vulcanized to the base member. A vulcanized rubber and fibre composition base unit'is especially desirable because it is waterproof and if by any chance water does get in between the base member and the tread unit due to an imperfect joining of said union and member around the edges of the sole, the water will notV cause deterioration of the base member. They rub.- ber cement which can be used in joining the rubber tread unit to the rubber composition base unit is unaffected by water so that even if the entire sole be subjected to the influence of water it will not deteriorate in anyV man- DGI'. f i 1 Another'object of the invention is provide a novel process for producin a .shoe

havinga unitary, waterproof sole 1n which,

the stitches which secure the ciute're''sble to the welt are embedded in the homogeneous material of the welt. y

Other objects and features of the invention will more fully appear from the following the claims.

The drawings illustrate 1n elevation a prethe invention, there y description and the accompanying draw- `ing and will be particularly pointed out in ferred form of shoe and shoe sole embodying the broad principles ofthe invention.

i In the drawings:

' Fig. l is a shoe with a preferred type of sole applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is an elevation of a shoe and sole therefor showing the sole in separated layers as they are fixed to the shoe.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention illustratedherein the shoe comprises an upper l and a welt 2 fastened to the upper and inner sole in the usual manner. A heel seat 3 is fastened, preferably by nails 4, to theheel of the shoe in prder to provide a projecting flange 5 around the heel as a continuation .of the welt to lwhich the sole of the shoe may be sewn. The outer sole of the shoe comprises a base member 6 for joining to the welt of the shoe, an intermediate member 7, and a relatively thick tread member 8 having a heel 9 preferably formed integral therewith. Although various materials may be used for the base, intermediate, andtread members, the base member is preferably of a waterproof composition, the treadmember is preferably of plastic material, and the intermediate member is ofthe same composition as the tread member. The base member and intermediate member together form a base unit and since the intermediate member and treadmember are of the same composition and form the actual tread of the shoe, they together may be termed the tread unit. 'The tread unit is preferably of a plastic material such as crude rubber and the base member for attaching the sole to the welt of the shoe, is of a rubber and fibre composition having such characteristics that it may be caused to cohere homogeneousl .with the materialof the tread unit by vu canization or by the use of a cementitious composition :containing a solvent yfor the plastic material of the base and tread member. vThe fibre in the base member gives or assistsin giving the base member the desirable property of being non-extensible so that it holds the welt and sole of the shoe4v 'together and the bottom of the shoe in shape and the rubber constituent of the base member that causes said `member to cohere `so strongly with the material of thetread to to bezreadily sewn `to the welt of the shoe, and sincethe `tre'ad`me1nber may be caused Vto cohere so firmly to the base "unit by means of .the intermediate member after the base unit .has been sewn to the shoe and on the outside of the stitching, the stitches are em- -bedded in the homogeneous composition of the outer sole well beneath thesurface thereof and are protected from the deteriorating effect of any moisture or dampness.

In making the sole and securing it to the lib homogeneously to the fibrous material.

immer shoe a quantity of crude rubber is rst moulded to form the tread member 8 and the intermediate member 7 of such an area that they will well cover the bottom of the shoe and form a sole therefor. The base member is molded in the proper shape from a composition of rubber and fibre and is then vulcanized. y The adjoining surfaces of the base member'and thev intermediate member are then coated with a rubber cement havin a constituent which is a solvent for the rub r ofthe sole and base member and when the cement has dried to such an extent that the surfaces are in the right condition for joining they are placed together and the base unit is then preferably placed in a heated vulcanizing press. The surface of the press which rests a einst the crude rubber intermediate mem er is heated so that when pressure is a plied, the intermediate member is not on y cemented but vulcanized to the base memberto form a base unit the layers of which are inseparable. The base unit therefore comprises a layer of fibrous material with a facing of rubber cohering f crude rubber is used for the intermediate member, a base unit may thus be formed comprising a layer of waterproof vulcan# ized rubber and bre material with a facing of crude rubber cohering homogeneously to the hbrous material. The base unit is then sewed by means of stitches 1() to the welt of the shoe with the brous material lying next to the welt and the facing outermost. outer surface of` the intermediate member and the inner surface of the tread member are then coated with rubber cement containaconstituent which is a solvent of theV 1n rubber and stuck together by means of-pres sure with or without the application of heat. When heatis applied the tread-member is vulcanized to the intermediate member but in either case there 'is an interlocking of the molecules 'of the rubber on the intermediate member with the molecules of the rubber of the tread member which causes a ffirm cohesion of the two which inseparably holds them together`4 'ust as the intermediate member is insepara 1y held to the base member.-

By carrying out the above process with the materials formed and in the condition above stated I am enabled to provide a welted shoe comprising an` outer sole having a base unit consisting of a layer of water- The proof vulcanized rubber and nbre material provided with a section of crude rubber cohering homogeneously to the fibrous material throughout its entire area stitched to the Welt of the shoe, and a relatively thick tread member of crude rubber cohering homogeneously to the facing. The parts of the sole are inseparably joined and the stitching which secures the sole to the welt of the shoe is embedded in the composition of crude rubber well beneath the tread surface thereof thereby protecting the stitches from dampness.

ll desire that the invention be construed as broadly as the limitations in the claims.

Havingrthus described the invention what is claimed as new .and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

v 1. A welted shoe comprising a welt, a base unit consisting of an upper layer of a tough substantially non-extensible homogeneous composition of nbre and rubber to maintain the shape of the shoe and form an anchorage for stitches and a lower layer of rubber cohering homogeneously to the upper layer throughout its entire area, stitches passing through and uniting the welt and base unit and a relatively thick tread member of rubber cohering homogeneous'ly to the lower layer of the base unit throughout its entire area, whereby the base unit and tread mem- ,ber form an indivisible outer sole with the stitches embedded well beneath the .tread surface.

2. The proces of makinga shoe which consists in providing a welted shoe upper, providing a base unit of an upper layer 'of a tough substantiallyv non-extensible homogeneous composition of fibre and rubber to maintain the shape 'of the shoe and provide an anchorage for stitches and a lower layer of rubber cohering homogeneously to the upper layer throughout its ent1re area, stitching the base unit to the welt with'the upper layer contacting with the welt, applynga relatively thick treadvmember of rub. ber to the lower layer of the base unit and causing the rubber constituents of the tread member and base unit to cohere homogeneously throughout their entire contacting areas.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to 'this specification.

WILLIAM H. CARY; 

